Corpus Christi home gutted by fire during family's vacation

CORPUS CHRISTI - A Corpus Christi family vacationing at Disneyland had to cut their travels short after fire gutted their home early Friday.

A neighbor who agreed to watch over the house in the 1800 block of Shely Street woke up Jose Jimenez in California with a cellphone call to tell him flames had engulfed the home.

Corpus Christi Fire Marshal Andy Cardiel said the cause of the blaze has not been determined.

Jimenez's wife, Aurora Jimenez, said she lost at least 31 years worth of photos. A couple of framed pictures and some important personal documents were spared, she said.

The couple and their car full of children and grandchildren were driving back to Texas from California on Friday. They had not planned to return home until Sunday or Monday.

"It didn't work out the way we expected," Jose Jimenez said. "Everything crumbled on us."

The family planned the spring break vacation for about a year. The couple lived in the home with a 16-year-old daughter, whose bedroom was destroyed. The fire left a gaping hole in the roof, making the house dangerous to enter, Aurora Jimenez said.

She said the home is insured but she isn't sure how much coverage the family has. She said she's thankful the family was away on vacation so no one was injured.

They plan to stay in a hotel when they arrive in Corpus Christi. Their son, Jose Jimenez Jr., stayed at home this week to work. He rushed to the house when he got a phone call at about 5 a.m. and found flames erupting from the roof.

"It's just sad that they're going to come home and nothing's going to be there," he said.